The next day, as news of Admiral Akainu's defeat spread across the world, it sent shockwaves through every corner of the seas.
The name of the Kiryuu Pirates once again shook the world's great powers.
Souta Kiryuu… this man has grown to such terrifying heights.
He hadn't just fought the legendary Golden Lion Shiki — he had gone on to defeat the Marine Admiral Sakazuki, the "Red Dog."
Now, everyone was asking the same question — is there any force left in this world that can escape the Kiryuu Pirates' hunt?
Even the Holy Land of Mariejois felt the threat. The World Government had been forced to construct a defensive barrier to protect itself from the possibility of Kiryuu's wrath.
If Souta Kiryuu ever chose to make a move, not even the Four Emperors or the Revolutionary Army could withstand the might of his crew.
That fear spread like wildfire.
Underground organizations, pirate alliances, even the World Government's allied nations began trembling in unease.
Marine Headquarters — Marineford
Inside the massive fortress that had seen countless wars, two veterans sat in heavy silence — Aokiji Kuzan and the legendary Iron Fist Garp.
Both had only just returned from their missions, and the moment the report of Akainu's fall reached them, their faces darkened.
If the Kiryuu Pirates ever decided to attack them next, neither could say for sure that they'd survive.
It was their fortune — and Akainu's misfortune — that Souta Kiryuu had chosen a different target.
With Kizaru, Momousagi, and Chaton having been reassigned to guard Mariejois, the strength of Marine Headquarters had grown dangerously thin.
If the Kiryuu Pirates had decided to attack Marineford instead of Akainu, no one could say whether Fleet Admiral Sengoku, Advisor Tsuru, Black Arm Zephyr, or Heima Tenmasa could have held the line.
Lately, the Kiryuu Pirates had become far too active — overwhelmingly aggressive.
And after the Five Elders destroyed Skypiea, Sengoku no longer dared to send Aokiji or Garp away from Marineford.
Their presence now served as both a shield for Headquarters and a deterrent to any threat against the Holy Land.
With Akainu captured, the Five Elders and Sengoku reconvened — and began discussing the Global Conscription Initiative once again.
The Marines needed to replenish their ranks and restore their highest-level combat strength.
The Five Elders even proposed reassigning Kizaru — stripping him of his Admiral rank and appointing him as the new CP Chief stationed at Mariejois.
But Kizaru, with his trademark lazy smile, politely declined.
That refusal earned him the full fury of Saint Saturn, who berated him mercilessly.
Even Momousagi (Gion) and Chaton (Tokikake) had rejected the CP appointment, insisting they would remain Marines and uphold their own sense of justice.
Finally, after the protective barrier around the Holy Land was completed, Director Heima Tenmasa of the Marine Criminal Investigation Bureau was summoned by the Five Elders to take charge of defending Mariejois.
Kizaru, Momousagi, and Chaton were sent back to Marineford — though everyone knew the truth:
those two "disobedient" Vice Admirals would likely never be promoted to Admiral rank in this lifetime.
New World — Prison Island (Jail Island)
On a remote island surrounded by storm-tossed seas, a blue-haired man wearing dark sunglasses answered a golden Den Den Mushi that chirped sharply on his desk. A streak of brown ran through his blue hair, glinting under the cold laboratory light.
"What is it?"
He spoke lazily, his tone utterly indifferent — as though he were not speaking to one of the most powerful men in the world.
He wore a long black fur-lined cloak draped over a white scientist's coat, and beneath that, a fitted navy-blue Marine suit.
The voice on the other end was calm, authoritative — but tinged with uncharacteristic respect.
"Return to Mariejois. You'll take over as Chief of CP. You may continue your research into those energies."
It was Saint Saturn, one of the Five Elders. His voice carried more weight than any Fleet Admiral's order.
The blue-haired man's lips curled into a faint smile. "Perfect timing. I was hitting a bit of a wall anyway."
His sunglasses gleamed as a manic glint flashed behind them. The moment he hung up, a terrifying surge of power erupted from his body. The entire island trembled violently, as if awakening to the storm within him.
"What a fascinating energy…" he whispered, eyes wide with obsession. "The force of nature, the rhythm of life, Haki, the despair of mankind, immortality itself…"
"This is the fundamental essence of the world — the purest element that composes all creation!"
Then, the man burst into laughter — wild and frenzied.
His name was Isaac.
Once a brilliant researcher within the Marines, he had later joined Saint Saturn's World Government Research Division, a secret unit directly under the Five Elders.
There, he delved deep into the nature of Devil Fruits and the core energies behind Haki — until he uncovered the Five Elders' most forbidden secret: their immortality.
He even detected a strange, ancient power within Saturn himself — one far beyond Haki, a force that defied death.
That power, known only as "Shiki" — The Principle of Form, was said to be the primordial energy that made up the entire world.
The truth of Devil Fruits, the secret of Haki, the curse of the Mother of Nature, the weapon Poseidon — everything tied back to this mysterious source.
All truth was contained within Shiki.
To master it meant to become a god.
But Isaac's discoveries had gone too far. He had brushed against the Five Elders' greatest secret, and for that, Saturn had exiled him — appointing him as the Warden of Prison Island in the New World.
Even so, Isaac never stopped his research. He continued his forbidden experiments, using the entire prison and its living inhabitants as his test subjects.
Over time, both he and the island itself underwent horrifying changes.
The creatures there mutated, evolved unnaturally, and grew immensely powerful — reflections of Isaac's twisted genius.
"Immortality… I want it too," he murmured, grinning. "The World King behind you old fools must have mastered it already, hasn't he?"
He laughed again — a low, dark sound echoing through the metallic corridors.
From the clues he'd gathered, Isaac had long suspected that someone even greater than the Five Elders existed.
And when Souta Kiryuu exposed Imu, the so-called King of the World — one of the original Twenty Kings who had lived for over eight hundred years — Isaac's suspicions were confirmed.
That revelation only deepened his obsession. He had already gained immense power through Shiki, and now, he hungered for the rest of the truth.
To him, everything — Devil Fruits, Haki, even emotion and life itself — were all just different expressions of Shiki.
"The transformation of the Mink Tribe beneath the moon… the Drums of Liberation of the Sun God Nika — they're all manifestations of Shiki!" he exclaimed, licking his lips. "And Souta Kiryuu, that experimental monster, can wield so many forms of it at once. His affinity for the primal energy is something to envy…"
He thought of Vegapunk and sneered.
"That fool only excels because of his Brain-Brain Fruit. He's not more intelligent than me — he's just lucky. He doesn't even understand what Shiki truly is. He's just fumbling blindly through scraps of knowledge, never realizing the real foundation of this world."
Isaac's grin widened into madness. "But I'll uncover it. I'll stand above them all."
If he could master the Shiki of Life and Will, he would be able to create Devil Fruit abilities at will — to command the very essence of existence.
But the path to such godlike power was forbidden and perilous. The Five Elders — and the eternal King — would never allow him to reach it.
"Those decrepit fossils… rotting on their thrones, clinging to their power… suppressing my genius!"
His voice grew darker, sharper. "But once I get the chance…"
A wicked smile curved his lips. "I'll make them all kneel before me."
With that, Isaac left his sealed laboratory and boarded a prison battleship bound for Mariejois — determined to uncover the hidden truths behind the Five Elders and the King of the World.